Photographed by Midas Touch Creative Group

Anttoni

Keith F. Miller, Jr.November 11, 2016MEN

Anttoni Lopez, an early thirtysomething from the Bronx, is of Puerto Rican, Palestinian, and Italian descent.

Strong but soft facial features, an athletic build, an affinity for colorful underwear, and title of entertainer to boot, might give you the impression he’s always gotten what he wanted. But as we’ve all learned at some point, assumptions have a funny way of making asses out of us.

Here’s what we do know: Like so many young men in the LGBTQ community, self-love was in low supply and at times all Anttoni felt he could rely on was the toxic beauty that both gave him the attention he craved, but secretly sabotaged his hopes at happiness. Luckily, his story doesn’t end there. In fact, that’s where it truly begins.

From being a victim of repeated sexual abuse to a marriage that ended in divorce, Anttoni shows us what happens when we use life’s lessons to bring out the best in ourselves by shining light on the biggest fears that haunt us from the shadows.

But instead of accepting things as they were, Anttoni stared at himself in the mirror and made a defining choice: to fall in love with himself, first.

Four years later, things aren’t perfect. But he doesn’t need them to be. He’s happy with the skin he’s in, and his life has changed for the better because of it.

Experience Anttoni’s Pillow Talk journey:

The Bravery Intimacy Requires A World Without Labels Overcoming Toxic Beauty

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The Healing Literacy Framework

In 2019, Keith F. Miller, Jr., observed something remarkable while running creative writing after school programs in Savannah, GA: Students from all backgrounds didn’t just step outside their comfort zones—they learned, led, and thrived with unmistakable joy. Despite this, Keith heard from students and families that school, even for the high-achievers, was a place they survived, not thrived. This led Keith, through his studies in Educational Psychology, to explore why young people felt empowered to learn, lead, and heal in some spaces but not in others.

Through a qualitative research study involving interviews with high schoolers, fellow teaching artists over a year, in addition to examining creative works from youth journals and performances, Keith found that when young people engage in arts-based healing practices with trusted others (peers and adults), they don’t just cope with their struggles—they transform them, becoming vibrant leaders in the process.

Drawing inspiration from the process of rainbow formation—reflection, refraction, and dispersion—and building off of groundbreaking research from scholars like David Kirkland, Gholdy Muhammad, Bettina Love, Bianca Baldridge, and Shawn Ginwright, Keith developed the Healing Literacy Framework, illustrating how arts-based, community programs are vital in supporting young people as they overcome educational trauma, and, in doing so, can result in transformative partnerships in school and beyond that prove healing is possible for everyone.

Enter, HEALIT

In 2019, Keith F. Miller, Jr., observed something remarkable while running creative writing after school programs in Savannah, GA: Students from all backgrounds didn’t just step outside their comfort zones—they learned, led, and thrived with unmistakable joy. Despite this, Keith heard from students and families that school, even for the high-achievers, was a place they survived, not thrived. This led Keith, through his studies in Educational Psychology, to explore why young people felt empowered to learn, lead, and heal in some spaces but not in others.

Through a qualitative research study involving interviews with high schoolers, fellow teaching artists over a year, in addition to examining creative works from youth journals and performances, Keith found that when young people engage in arts-based healing practices with trusted others (peers and adults), they don’t just cope with their struggles—they transform them, becoming vibrant leaders in the process.

Drawing inspiration from the process of rainbow formation—reflection, refraction, and dispersion—and building off of groundbreaking research from scholars like David Kirkland, Gholdy Muhammad, Bettina Love, Bianca Baldridge, and Shawn Ginwright, Keith developed the Healing Literacy Framework, illustrating how arts-based, community programs are vital in supporting young people as they overcome educational trauma, and, in doing so, can result in transformative partnerships in school and beyond that prove healing is possible for everyone.